Kol isha be-lakash vs mulier taceat in ecclesia. A woman’s voice in Judaism and Christianity

Bożena Muszkalska

Instytut Muzykologii, UWr

Abstract

The object of the considerations in the present study is the prohibition of the use of female voice in Orthodox synagogues and similar restrictions which were in force in the Christian Church, as well as changes that have taken place in this regard While in the female monasteries religious music began to flourish relatively early, the Jewish women could turn to perform liturgical chants only in effect of resistance against the dictum called in brief Kol isha. Beginning of these changes coincides with the period of the Jewish Enlightenment, Haskalah, in the nineteenth century, and they have been proceeding to modern times.

Keywords:

female voice, singing, Judaism, Christianity, prayer